Cabinets de Curiosites

The surreally beautiful work of French artist Maissa Toulet came to me through a lucky page click. Her portfolio shows a range of media (from cut paper and plastic toy soldiers to glass orbs and taxidermy), and seems to come from an eccentrically creative mind. Her multimedia "Cabinets de Curiosites" range in theme and are wonderfully whimsical. I would love to spend a day or four exploring her permanent installation at Le Comptoir General in Paris.

I Feel Pretty

As I was flipping through fall fashion mags, I came to the conclusion that chunky costume jewelry and similarly gaudy accessories are the new "It Thing," and that I can't stand them. As fun as it may be to be an 80s pop star for a day, when it comes to the day-to-day, I like to keep it simple. Luckily for me, German-based jewelry designers Katheyl seem to feel the same way. With an extensive catalogue of necklaces, bracelets, rings and hair pins adorned with handmade flowers in pretty pastel colors and the incorporation of vintage elements, Katheyl is my new go-to for delicately feminine (and affordable) pieces. Some of my favorites: the Autumn and Winter Inspired Hair Pin Set ($12), Miniature Chair with Peach Dahlia and Gold Leaf necklace ($23) and Vintage Peach English Rose Filigree ring ($12).

Nate the Great

With a fine arts background and a PhD in Creative Writing and British Romanticism, New York-native Nate Pritts writes spunky, endearingly awkward and highly addictive prose. Though his past poetry collections Sensational Spectacular (2007) and Honorary Astronaut (2008) are outstanding, it is one of his more recent compilation of works The Wonderfull Yeare: a shepherd's calendar that has me hooked. A truly arresting selection from The Wonderfull Yeare "& then afterward" encompasses passion, youthful romance and a sort of vibrance that demands attention. There are obvious romantic elements, but Pritts weaves them into his work, and avoids the painfully cliche. Keep him on your literary radar.

For more from Pritts and his collection of writers, check out his literary journal H_NGM_N. Not only are the included poetry, prose, etc. wonderful, the fun, creative covers are just another draw.

Issue #10 is available now.

It's broken beyond repair

This past week, I fell in love with James Frey's

A Million Little Pieces. Despite some untruths of the work, I found Frey's telling of his stint in a rehabilitation facility beautifully disturbing. Though not a book for the faint of heart, you won't be able to keep from becoming emotionally attached to James and the cast of misfits he calls friends.

Have you ever been in love?

This week, I reread Neil Gaiman's Fragile Things, and rather than select just this one work from his extensive library, I chose to feature him and all he has written and recorded.

BOOKS

A Walking Tour of the Shambles (with Gene Wolfe)
The Absolute Death

Adventures in the Dream Trade

All New Stories (with All Sarantonio)

American Gods

Anansi Boys

Angels & Visitations

Coraline

Day of the Dead

Don't Panic

Fragile Things

Good Omens (with Terry Pratchett)

Interworld (with Michael Reaves)

M is for Magic
MirrorMask (with Dave McKean)

Neverwhere

Now We Are Sick (with Stephen Jones)

Odd and the Frost Giants

Smoke & Mirrors

Stardust

The Absolute Death

The Alchemy of MirrorMask

The Dangerous Alphabet

The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish

The Graveyard Book

The Sandman Book of Dreams

Wolves in the Walls

COMICS

1602

Black Orchid

Books of Magic (with Dave McKean)

Creatures of the Night

Death: The High Cost of Living

Death: The Time of Your Life

Harlequin Valentine

Midnight Days

Mr. Punch: The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy

Murder Mysteries

Sandman: The Dream Hunter

Signal to Noise

Stardust

The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1-4

The Last Temptation

The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Noctures

The Sandman Vol. 2: The Doll's House

The Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country

The Sandman Vol. 4: Season of Mists

The Sandman Vol. 5: A Game of You

The Sandman Vol. 6: Fables & Reflections

The Sandman Vol. 7: Brief Lives

The Sandman Vol. 8: The Worlds' End

The Sandman Vol. 9: The Kindly Ones

The Sandman Vol. 10: The Wake

The Sandman: Endless Nights

Violent Cases

AUDIO

A Study in Emerald

American Gods

Anansi Boys

Coraline

Fragile Things

Good Omens

InterWorld

M is for Magic

MirrorMask

Neverwhere

Odd and the Frost Giants

Speaking in Tongues

Stardust

Telling Tales

The Graveyard Books

Two Plays for Voice: Snow Glass Apples & Murder

Warning: Contains Language

Wolves in the Walls

Come, my love, we have oceans to sail

New York poet, writer, rapper and actor Saul Williams knows. He knows how to capture the flutter of a heartbeat, the anger in a fist and the beauty in a blink. He knows pain, heartache and laughter. He knows how to weave simple words into music.

This summer, I read two of his poetry collections, S/HE and , said the Shotgun to the Head. Both seemed to catch emotions as if they were butterflies, lacing them into the inked words as they float across the pages and then suddenly swarm.

"I have seen the truth

many times

but for the first time

she saw me"

from S/HE

"intelligence is intuitive

you needn't learn to love

unless you've been taught

to fear and hate"

from , said the Shotgun to the Head